Monthly Archives: April 2015

I love when simple things are impressive. So easy to make a fruit bouquet. Just get a variety of fruit, slice or use cookie cutters to create a variety of shapes, put them on wooden skewers and poke into some type of base.

In this case, I used a V-shape decorating tool to cut a watermelon in half to create the base.

I used red and green grapes in various patterns on the skewers.

And I used flower shape and heart shape cookie cutters on slices of pineapple.

That’s it. Truly simple. And you can use Google images to find tons of ideas for designs.

True Confession:
I didn’t adapt this recipe in the least. Took it straight from Paula Deen’s website. In fact, I can’t imagine a single way to improve upon it. It is easy to make and such a hit at parties. Personally I can ONLY make it when I’m taking it to a party or I’ll eat every ounce if home alone with it.

You can get the recipe on Paula Deen’s website:http://www.pauladeen.com/not-yo-mamas-banana-pudding. But since you’re already here, I’ll go ahead and share the recipe with you myself.

1. Line a 9″x13″ baking dish (or in my case, a large glass bowl) with Pepperidge Farm Chessman Cookies.

2. Then slice six to eight bananas and spread those across the cookies.

3. In one mixing bowl, mix 2 cups milk and a 5oz box of French Vanilla Jello Instant Pudding Mix. In another mixing bowl, mix 8oz softened cream cheese and one can of sweetened condensed milk. (You see what makes this banana pudding so incredible?)

4. Fold a 12oz container of whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Then fold the pudding into that mixture.

Man-oh-man! Easy and delish! Only two ingredients (three or four if you add spices).

1. Trim the tough ends off the asparagus.

2. Cut bacon strips in half.

3. Wrap half a bacon strip around each asparagus spear. I had planned to secure with toothpicks but didn’t have any and found that the bacon stuck just fine on its own.

4. Sprinkle spices to taste. I just use garlic.

5. Bake at 450 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes, until the bacon is done to your liking. Simple as that.

Note: By the time the bacon pleased me, the asparagus looked overcooked, but it was absolutely delicious and a big hit at my brunch. My son suggested baking it at 350 for 15 minutes and then using the broiler for a minute or two to see if that helps crisp the bacon without overcooking the asparagus. He’s such a gem. I’ll try that next time.